Plush toys are grotesque figures, generally of animals, their essential characteristics being their softness to the touch and ease of elastic deformability. This latter property is achieved by their stuffing, consisting of a soft material (for example, polyester).
At the present time, these toys are normally imported from countries with low-cost labour as, due to the high number of pieces comprising their morphology and the relative complexity of their assembly, the labour component of the cost of the toy is very high.
Furthermore, the transportation of the goods from the country that manufactures them to the country marketing them is also a significant component of the cost, as these are items in which the volume/weight proportion is very high.
In order to reduce the impact of the transportation cost on the price of the toy, occasionally (particularly when a relatively large size is involved) recourse is had to the purchase at source of the outside covering of the toy only, in order to stuff and close it in the country of destination.